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Pietra Brettkelly is a New Zealand documentary director and producer, best known for the award-winning film The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins.

Although based in New Zealand, much of Brettkelly's documentary subject matter has been international. When filming in southern Sudan in 2006 for the television documentary series Ends of the Earth for Television New Zealand, Pietra met Italian artist [[Vanessa Beecroft]. Beecroft is famous for her provocative performance art, and while in Sudan for a project, had decided to try and adopt motherless twins.

Brettkelly had previously produced a documentary on international adoption, The Rescue of Iani and, along with cameraman Jacob Bryant, eventually followed Beecroft's adoption efforts over 16 months

Filmography

 * The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. In 2009 Brettkelly was invited to screen the film at the New York's Museum of Modern Art as part of their documentary fortnight.
 * In 2003 Brettkelly travelled to Libya for that country’s first ever beauty pageant. Beauty Will Save the World follows the exploits of 19 year-old Teca Zendik, the American contender for the crown, and the documentary featured an interview with Muammar al-Gaddafi.
 * Ends of the Earth: A four-part documentary series searching out New Zealanders living in some of the world's more extreme locations. The episodes were filmed in Afghanistan, the Amazon, Kazakhstan, the Arctic Circle, Sudan, Uganda and were presented by Paul Henry.
 * The Rescue of Iani Part 1 & 2, TV3 New Zealand

Music for many of Brettkelly's documentaries has been composed by musician and singer Anika Moa.

Festivals and awards

 * Best Editing, World Cinema Documentary (Editor: Irena Dol)
 * Best Director, EIDF Seoul Korea
 * Best Documentary, Whistler Film Festival, Canada,
 * Special Jury Prize, Zurich Film Festival
 * Best Director, Documentary; Best Arts/Festival Documentary; Best Editing (Irena Dol), Qantas Film & Television Awards, New Zealand, 2009

Beauty Will Save The World premiered at the American Film Institute Film Festival in Los Angeles and later screened at Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, the Toronto Film Festival and IDFA in Amsterdam.